Cleveland Sports Forum

And it's....

IRVING

Is he going to be called Dr K?

Jazz take Kanter, so will the Cavs go for Knight?

Tristan Thompson!

Situational Statistics: the 2011 Big Men Crop
June 21, 2011

Tristan Thompson is the only one-and-done player in this class, and while he doesn't stand out overall, his ability to get to the line is an incredibly valuable skill.

No player in this group of big men got to the line at a higher rate than Thompson. More than a quarter (26.3%) of his possessions resulted in a free throw, which is a pretty staggering number. Thompson only scored 0.938 PPP overall (4th last), and there's no question that his skill level has a long way to go, but he has plenty of time to improve and his ability to get his team into the bonus despite being so raw is promising.

Thompson's biggest weaknesses from a situational standpoint are his post-game and jump shooting. With nearly 37% of his touches coming down low, the Canadian big man only scored 0.749 points per-possessions with his back to the basket, 2nd to last in this group after Jeremy Tyler. As a jump shooter, Thompson scored a sample worst 0.654 PPP on a meager 0.7 attempts per-game, which is not much of a surprise considering his 49% free throw conversion rate. The 20-year old big man lacks significant polish at this point.

At this juncture, Thompson's ability to put the ball on the deck and throw his weight around down low are notable, but he's only an average finisher (64%) and has a ton of room to grow into a role in the future as his skill set begins to dictate what he can bring to a team offensively.
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Analyzing the 2011 NBA Combine Measurements
May 21, 2011
Measuring in slightly taller than expected 6-7.5, Tristan Thompson has average size but compensates with a 7-1 ¼ inch wingspan. Those measurements put his in the company of Josh Smith (6-7 without shoes, 7-0 wingspan) and James Johnson (6-7 without shoes, 7-0 ¾ wingspan) amongst recently drafted players. Amongst the younger players here, Thompson's 227-pound frame is also impressive.
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From DraftExpress.com http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Tri ... z1Q9FyaC5e
http://www.draftexpress.com

Basically he is a physical defender who blocks shots, and very good offensive rebounder. Raw offensive game.

Tristan Thompson is probably the name that is most commonly linked to Phoenix in mock drafts. All the signs are pointing to the Suns drafting a big man, and Thompson could be the high-potential power forward the Suns desperately need. Hit the jump for a breakdown of his game.





Star-divide
OFFENSE

Thompson is a high-motor player who scores many of his points on hustle plays. He's very quick and is an excellent offensive rebounder which leads to a lot of easy put-backs and close looks. But outside of his offensive rebounding prowess, he is extremely raw offensively. While watching some clips of him, I was reminded of a young Amar'e Stoudemire. Thompson does not have any sort of a developed back-to-the-basket game and often resorted to crazy fall-away shots if he couldn't get close enough to dunk it. He also is not a particularly gifted passer. However, he did show signs of becoming a good face-up player as the season rolled on, preferring to use his quickness to blow by his man and finish at the rim. You may be saying to yourself at this point, "A young Amar'e? Draft that kid!" But the problem in that he's not Amar'e. STAT is bigger, more explosive, and has a uniquely soft touch around the basket that I just don't see with Thompson. This lack of touch and his raw skillset really manifest themselves in his mid-range jumper, which is virtually non-existent. With his quickness, he could develop into a nice pick-and-roll finisher, and this might be one area on offense where he can contribute.

DEFENSE

Where Thompson has a long way to go on offense, he is much more ready to contribute defensively. His quick feet and length mean he can be a real disruptive force in the paint. Although a bit under-sized, Thompson has a strong lower body and will hopefully be able to hold his own in the post. His game against Arizona's Derrick Williams, where he held the top pick to just 4-14 shooting, shows that he has what it takes to lock down the best of the best. DX suggests that he may even be able to stay with some small forwards, which is a testament to his defensive versatility. Considering how good the Texas big man is at cleaning up the offensive glass, it may surprise you to learn that his defensive rebounding fundamentals are not quite up to snuff. He is often caught out of position and can frequently be seen watching the ball rather than looking for a man to box out. This is an area he must improve, although with the effort he shows in the rest of his game this should be easily corrected.

When interviewed on ESPN, he talked about how he is working with John Lucas out in Texas on his jump shot, shooting "thousands per day".

The contract situation with Jonas V must really be bad for the Cavs to pass on him. I wonder if there was some Dan Gilbert impatience in the decision. Of course, JV did say in an interview that his favorite team was the Heat.

I guess they would have taken Kanter at 4.

Sounds like Jent will have his work cut out for him turning Thompson into a competent shooter.
But if he can rebound and likes to live in the paint and can be effective that way, that would be okay. Not too excited by this pick but I will hope for the best.

Surprised the Cavs couldn't pull off a trade of some sort.

TFIR- Thanks for those early reports on Thompson.

the Cavs second round pick:

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Justin-Harper-6341/

Same source on Thompson, not very exciting:

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Tri ... pson-5226/

Same, IRving:

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Kyrie-Irving-5735/

Didn't Lucas work with Boobie?

Cavs are still lacking a guy who can consistently get 20 points per game and hit from the outside.